HAYHURST FOCUSES WHILE SOUDER SPUTTERS

Mark Souder has decided the best way to deal with the issues of the Third District is, well, to just ignore them for what he mistakenly believes are better pickins.  Souder, with his little pea-pickin’ right-wing conservative heart, is dodging and weaving like a boxer trying to avoid punches and would rather attack President Obama than deal with the high unemployment rate in the Third District.

Indiana’s Third District is suffering – and suffering greatly.  The eight counties that comprise the district include most of Allen, most of Elkhart, and all of DeKalb, Kosciusko, LaGrange, Noble, Steuben, and Whitley.  The Third District is heavily over-represented in the infamous Top Ten of unemployment statistics in the September report prepared October 14, 2009.

The following unemployment statistics show a discouraging and disturbing picture – a picture that Souder seems content to ignore in favor of attacking President Obama:

IDWD Research and Analysis
Labor Area Unemployment Statistics

September 2009 Statistics

Top Ten Stressed Counties

Elkhart County          15.0
Noble County             14.5
Lagrange County      14.0
Adams County               13.4
Fayette County              13.4
Blackford County          13.3
Steuben County         12.9
Starke County                 12.6
DeKalb County            12.4

An astounding 50% of the Top Ten are in the Third District.  Add to that Whitley County – 11.6% – in the second tier of ten counties and Kosciusko County – 11.0% – in the third tier, and the only county in the Third District that has not broken the infamous 10.0% unemployment figure is Allen County, holding at 9.0%.

Tom Hayhurst has been out in the counties listening to the people and communicating with them.  Since he announced in August that he would again challenge Souder, Hayhurst has traveled from one end of the Third District to the other.  His main concern?  The people of the Third District.

Souder’s main concern?  Holding onto that congressional seat which he said in 1994 that he would vacate in 6 terms.  He has become adept at holding town hall meetings and call-ins slanted to his view point of the present government, thereby feeding his attacks on Obama.

Rather than take a cold, hard look at the high unemployment rate that exists in his own district which he is supposed to be representing, Souder focuses on attacking President Obama.  Souder would rather join a battle over gun rights in someone else’s state than address the needs of his own constituency.

Fine with me – Souder can sputter and fume about Obama, but Hayhurst is doing the work that needs to be done for our Third District – focusing on those who will be his constituency.

 

 

OUT OF THE MIDDLE EAST

How many times do we need to learn a lesson?  The cause in Afghanistan is not winnable.  So listen to the John Fogerty song once again and see if you can learn anything.

 

And, if you can’t, then I really feel sorry for you.

COMPETITON IN HEALTH INSURANCE BUSINESS A MYTH

Competition in the health insurance business is a myth.  Those who oppose President Obama’s public option are crying foul that a public option would tilt the insurance coverage playing field unfairly.  Bull – the health insurance field is already tilted in favor of just a few insurance companies and is dominated in almost all markets by one or two companies which have swallowed up smaller companies and continue to grow, thus creating even less competition.

The American Medical Association’s 2007-2009 report on competition in the health insurance field finds that in the majority of Metropolitan Statistical Areas (MSA), a single health insurer dominates the market. Competition is undermined in hundreds of markets across the country.

Over the five years since the AMA’s first study, the country’s largest health insurers have continued to pursue aggressive acquisition strategies. The largest insurer, WellPoint Inc. (formed from the merger of Anthem Inc. and WellPoint Health Networks), has acquired 11 health insurers since 2000. The second-largest health insurer, UnitedHealth Group (United) has also acquired 11 health insurers since 2000.

In 2000, the two largest health Aetna and United, had a total membership of 32 million lives. As a result of mergers and acquisitions since 2000, the top two insurers today, WellPoint and United, each have memberships, respectively, of 34 million and 33 million, totaling more than 67 million covered lives.

While large health insurers have posted very healthy profits since 2000, premiums for consumers have increased without a corresponding increase in benefits. In fact, during the same time period, consumers have faced increased deductibles, co-payments and co-insurance. This has effectively reduced the scope of their health benefits coverage.

In our own Fort Wayne MSA, the two largest provides, WellPoint and Lutheran Preferred, control 52% and 23% of the market, respectively – those two companies alone control 75% of the Fort Wayne MSA.  Not much competition there.  The AMA’s report gives a picture of competition in all 50 states.

In Gary, Indiana, an area known for its poverty, two companies, HCSC (BCBS) and WellPoint control 68% and 24%, respectively.  Two companies – 92% of the market.  Hmm – where is the competition?

The American public is being sold a lie when the opponents of the public option cry that it will cut competition.  Little competition currently exists, and, as the major insurance companies continue to aggressively swallow up smaller companies, even less competition will exist.

What the mega insurance companies really want is to control even more of the market and, God forbid, that a public option would get in the way.

Chart with examples of lack of competition in the health insurance industry

REPUBLICANS SHOOT THEMSELVES IN THE FOOT – HOBBLE OFF INTO THE SUNSET

What was supposed to be a unified Republican uprising against the “socialist” agenda hidden in President Obama’s speech to schoolchildren has turned into a full rout of Republican antagonists.  Tucking their tiny little tails between their crooked little legs, Republicans have found little comfort in the non-issue that was to be their battle cry of indoctrination of our “poor, impressionable youngsters.”

In Allen County, nine – count ‘em – nine students were kept out of school by paranoid and close-minded parents intent on protecting little psyches against the big, bad presidential wolf.   Others – 85 to be exact – opted out of having their little tykes’ ears bombarded by Obama’s urging to stay in school, graduate, and contribute to the betterment of this country.  Those parents, rather than depriving their children of their day in school, wrote notes to teachers to have their kids sit out the speech.

What Republicans – and in particular, conservative Republicans – hoped would be an overwhelming protest against Obama’s speech to students to stay in school and get their education turned into one of the year’s biggest boondoggles for the ever-hopeful Republican obstructionists.

Now Republicans are trying to label the speech “conservative” in nature.   This strategy is laughable, and, to be quite honest, leaves me almost speechless.  I said almost because I am not totally speechless – just trying not to roll over laughing at what the Republicans are now trying in an effort to dig themselves out of a situation that makes them look totally assinine.

I guess the Repubs completely forgot about what a political speech to school children looks like.  But never fear, here is Ronnie Reagan’s entire speech to the school children of this country.  Perhaps Republicans should educate themselves in their party’s propensity to indoctrinate before they cry wolf – or would that be sheep.  Baa!

Remarks and a Question-and-Answer Session With Students of John A. Holmes High School of Edenton, North Carolina May 13, 1986

As you know, my remarks are being broadcast live over radio and television to high school students throughout the country. While I was in Tokyo at the economic summit, I found myself thinking about all of you, and I decided that when I got back it’d be good to report to you — share some thoughts that I’ve been having about the future.

In general, conditions in our country are about as bright as this very bright afternoon. I was worrying when I put that line in there that it might start to rain, and I’d have to say something else. [Laughter] We’ve been working to take an economy that was in bad shape and get it moving and growing again; take our national defense and make it first-rate again after a long period of decline; and to restore reason, respect, and reality to our foreign policy. And I think it’s fair to say that we’ve made a good deal of progress.

Only 5 years ago our economy suffered from high inflation, high interest rates, mushrooming government spending, and steadily increasing unemployment. A lot of people couldn’t find jobs, and people on fixed incomes were finding it harder to buy the basics, such as food and shelter. Well, we got inflation down, interest rates down, and our economy created over 1\1/2\ million new jobs just last year alone. The poor are now increasingly able to dig themselves out of poverty, and that’s been good economic news.

The good news in defense is that our Armed Forces, which were suffering from neglect and low funding, have now made a comeback. Morale is up in the services, and the quality of our men and women in uniform has never been better — and I mean never. As a matter of fact, we have the highest percentage of high school graduates in uniform today than we’ve ever had in the history of our nation, even back when we had the compulsory draft. In addition, our nation has encouraged a more realistic sense of defense needs.

In foreign affairs we’ve kept our friends close and the lines of communication with our adversaries open. We’ve tried to give the world the sense that the United States has a coherent and logical foreign policy that reflects our respect for freedom and our opposition to tyranny.

The point is that all we’ve done has had, and will continue to have, a direct impact on your lives. And the fact is, it’s your future, not ours. And all that we’ve done, we’ve done with an eye toward how it would impact you. We want to make your future better, because tomorrow belongs to you. And since you’re the leaders of tomorrow, I wanted to talk to all of you as a friend about the things you’ll have to do to ensure a prosperous nation and a peaceful world. And I’m sure that peace and prosperity must be at the top of your agenda for the future.

You have some special responsibilities ahead of you — very important responsibilities. America is back, yes, but we still face major challenges in the world. And it’s your generation that will have to accept the primary responsibility for tackling these challenges. It’s important that you’re fit for the future and that you be all that you can be. So, go for it! In the area of education you have a responsibility to try to learn and care about scientific and intellectual inquiry. The world is an increasingly competitive place. And if we’re to compete, we’ll have to do it with brainpower — your brainpower. So, keep learning and hit those books.

We have to remain economically competitive, and that means being aware of two things: first, what makes economies tick, and second, what works in other societies. We’ve been trying very hard in Washington to make America even more economically fit by really overhauling our entire tax structure. When we came into office, the top personal tax rate that the Federal Government could put on your income was 70 percent. Now, you can understand, I think, that if you were getting up in those brackets — there were 14 different tax brackets, depending on the amount of money in each bracket you earned. And when you could look and say, “If I earn another dollar, I only get to keep 30 cents out of it,” you can imagine the lack of incentive there. Well, we lowered it to 50 percent, and the economy really took off. Now we’re trying to lower it yet again so that families can keep more of their money and so the national economy will be lean and trim and fit for the future.

And it’s your generation that will defend freedom from its adversaries. The biggest contribution you can make to that quest is to become a good citizen. Good citizenship is vitally important if democracies are to continue. Good citizenship means trying to understand the issues and great questions of your day. It also means voting. To vote is to take part in this grand experiment called democracy in America. It’s your right and your responsibility to take part. Good citizenship also might mean considering going into teaching as a profession. There’s a teacher shortage, as you may know. You could help ease the situation and give to others the advantages you’ve been given if you become a teacher yourself. And it’s also important that you stay in school. That diploma counts. And I just want to personally congratulate those who have overcome some disadvantage and who stuck it out and will graduate this year.

And part of being a good citizen, part of being fit for the future so that you can meet America’s agenda for the future, is seeing to it that you live your life with a clear mind and a steady intellect. And that means saying no to drugs. Nancy has traveled across the country talking to young people like you. And many of them have talked to her about the allure of drugs, about the drug culture, and the kind of peer pressure that you come under to experiment and try out drugs. But when you come right down to it, drugs are just a dead-end street. They have nothing to offer you. I think you also ought to remember we only get one set of machinery. If you wear this set out, you can’t take it and trade it in someplace for a used one or a new one. So, what you do now and early in your life decides how able you’re going to be to enjoy yourself when you get to be my age.

And I want to tell you, I’m enjoying myself. I’ve talked to young people from China to Europe to the islands in the Caribbean. And let me tell you, they’re incredibly bright and talented, and they’re going to create quite a future for themselves. And you can’t keep up or catch up if you allow your mind to be clouded by drugs.

Well, that’s more or less what I wanted to say to you today. I’ll be talking to many young people over the next few months, and I’ll be expanding on certain points and amplifying certain themes. But for today, before your questions, I just want to let you know that I have been thinking about you very much. You are a special generation, and you’re facing special challenges. And the biggest is to be ready for a future that will prove to be demanding and exciting. Soon, we’ll enter the 21st century, a time that’ll have more than its share of great wonders. The next 10 or 15 years may well be the most exciting and challenging in the history of man. There’s the continuing revolution in technology, the possibility of curing diseases that have stalked us from the caveman era. There’s the marvelous conquest of space, a rich frontier whose riches we’ve barely glimpsed. And there’s the struggle between the democracies and those countries which are not democratic.

All of these possibilities bring with them questions. And it’s your generation that will have to answer them. That makes you all very important, indeed. You have much before you. And all I can say is that you’ve begun brilliantly. Continue to pursue excellence. Be proud of your country and its heritage, and be proud of yourselves, as we are proud of all of you.

The President. Thank you all, and welcome to the White House, and thank you for coming. I want to congratulate all of you from John A. Holmes High School in Edenton, North Carolina, on your great achievements this year and on your upcoming graduation. And a special greeting to Rob Boyce, the principal of this fine school.

If you would like to read the question and answer session, here is the link.  Talk about indoctrination of our students – but, of course, since it was a Republican that presented this speech, the naysayers find it acceptable.  What hypocrisy.  But that seems to be the only thing the Republicans are good for these days.

President Obama delivering his speech of hope and encouragement to students at Wakefield High School, Arlington, VA (AP Photo)

AND SO, MY FELLOW AMERICANS: ASK NOT WHAT YOUR COUNTRY CAN DO FOR YOU – ASK WHAT YOU CAN DO FOR YOUR COUNTRY.

I would imagine most Americans of any age would recognize the above quote from John F. Kennedy’s inaugural address of January 20, 1961.  Amazing isn’t it that such a quote holds so much meaning to so many and has been and still is often repeated.

Yet, almost 50 years later, our President is being maligned and disparaged for daring to speak to students and to ask them the very same thing.  For those who continue to despise Obama and criticize every step and every move he makes, I am providing the text of the speech, long as it is. 

But, I imagine there will still be those who will find a hidden “agenda” somewhere in the words Obama will deliver tomorrow in Arlington, Virginia.

Prepared Remarks of President Barack Obama Back to School Event Arlington, Virginia
September 8, 2009
 

The President: Hello everyone – how’s everybody doing today? I’m here with students at Wakefield High School in Arlington, Virginia. And we’ve got students tuning in from all across America, kindergarten through twelfth grade. I’m glad you all could join us today. 

I know that for many of you, today is the first day of school. And for those of you in kindergarten, or starting middle or high school, it’s your first day in a new school, so it’s understandable if you’re a little nervous. I imagine there are some seniors out there who are feeling pretty good right now, with just one more year to go. And no matter what grade you’re in, some of you are probably wishing it were still summer, and you could’ve stayed in bed just a little longer this morning.

I know that feeling. When I was young, my family lived in Indonesia for a few years, and my mother didn’t have the money to send me where all the American kids went to school. So she decided to teach me extra lessons herself, Monday through Friday – at 4:30 in the morning.   

Now I wasn’t too happy about getting up that early. A lot of times, I’d fall asleep right there at the kitchen table. But whenever I’d complain, my mother would just give me one of those looks and say, “This is no picnic for me either, buster.”

So I know some of you are still adjusting to being back at school. But I’m here today because I have something important to discuss with you. I’m here because I want to talk with you about your education and what’s expected of all of you in this new school year. 

Now I’ve given a lot of speeches about education. And I’ve talked a lot about responsibility.

I’ve talked about your teachers’ responsibility for inspiring you, and pushing you to learn. 

I’ve talked about your parents’ responsibility for making sure you stay on track, and get your homework done, and don’t spend every waking hour in front of the TV or with that Xbox. 

I’ve talked a lot about your government’s responsibility for setting high standards, supporting teachers and principals, and turning around schools that aren’t working where students aren’t getting the opportunities they deserve. 

But at the end of the day, we can have the most dedicated teachers, the most supportive parents, and the best schools in the world – and none of it will matter unless all of you fulfill your responsibilities. Unless you show up to those schools; pay attention to those teachers; listen to your parents, grandparents and other adults; and put in the hard work it takes to succeed. 

And that’s what I want to focus on today: the responsibility each of you has for your education. I want to start with the responsibility you have to yourself. 

Every single one of you has something you’re good at. Every single one of you has something to offer. And you have a responsibility to yourself to discover what that is. That’s the opportunity an education can provide. 

Maybe you could be a good writer – maybe even good enough to write a book or articles in a newspaper – but you might not know it until you write a paper for your English class. Maybe you could be an innovator or an inventor – maybe even good enough to come up with the next iPhone or a new medicine or vaccine – but you might not know it until you do a project for your science class. Maybe you could be a mayor or a Senator or a Supreme Court Justice, but you might not know that until you join student government or the debate team.

And no matter what you want to do with your life – I guarantee that you’ll need an education to do it. You want to be a doctor, or a teacher, or a police officer? You want to be a nurse or an architect, a lawyer or a member of our military? You’re going to need a good education for every single one of those careers. You can’t drop out of school and just drop into a good job. You’ve got to work for it and train for it and learn for it.

And this isn’t just important for your own life and your own future. What you make of your education will decide nothing less than the future of this country. What you’re learning in school today will determine whether we as a nation can meet our greatest challenges in the future. 

You’ll need the knowledge and problem-solving skills you learn in science and math to cure diseases like cancer and AIDS, and to develop new energy technologies and protect our environment. You’ll need the insights and critical thinking skills you gain in history and social studies to fight poverty and homelessness, crime and discrimination, and make our nation more fair and more free. You’ll need the creativity and ingenuity you develop in all your classes to build new companies that will create new jobs and boost our economy. 

We need every single one of you to develop your talents, skills and intellect so you can help solve our most difficult problems. If you don’t do that – if you quit on school – you’re not just quitting on yourself, you’re quitting on your country. 

Now I know it’s not always easy to do well in school. I know a lot of you have challenges in your lives right now that can make it hard to focus on your schoolwork.

I get it. I know what that’s like. My father left my family when I was two years old, and I was raised by a single mother who struggled at times to pay the bills and wasn’t always able to give us things the other kids had. There were times when I missed having a father in my life. There were times when I was lonely and felt like I didn’t fit in. 

So I wasn’t always as focused as I should have been. I did some things I’m not proud of, and got in more trouble than I should have. And my life could have easily taken a turn for the worse. 

But I was fortunate. I got a lot of second chances and had the opportunity to go to college, and law school, and follow my dreams. My wife, our First Lady Michelle Obama, has a similar story. Neither of her parents had gone to college, and they didn’t have much. But they worked hard, and she worked hard, so that she could go to the best schools in this country.

Some of you might not have those advantages. Maybe you don’t have adults in your life who give you the support that you need. Maybe someone in your family has lost their job, and there’s not enough money to go around. Maybe you live in a neighborhood where you don’t feel safe, or have friends who are pressuring you to do things you know aren’t right. 

But at the end of the day, the circumstances of your life – what you look like, where you come from, how much money you have, what you’ve got going on at home – that’s no excuse for neglecting your homework or having a bad attitude. That’s no excuse for talking back to your teacher, or cutting class, or dropping out of school. That’s no excuse for not trying. 

Where you are right now doesn’t have to determine where you’ll end up. No one’s written your destiny for you. Here in America, you write your own destiny. You make your own future. 

That’s what young people like you are doing every day, all across America. 

Young people like Jazmin Perez, from Roma, Texas. Jazmin didn’t speak English when she first started school. Hardly anyone in her hometown went to college, and neither of her parents had gone either. But she worked hard, earned good grades, got a scholarship to Brown University, and is now in graduate school, studying public health, on her way to being Dr. Jazmin Perez.

I’m thinking about Andoni Schultz, from Los Altos, California, who’s fought brain cancer since he was three. He’s endured all sorts of treatments and surgeries, one of which affected his memory, so it took him much longer – hundreds of extra hours – to do his schoolwork. But he never fell behind, and he’s headed to college this fall. 

And then there’s Shantell Steve, from my hometown of Chicago, Illinois. Even when bouncing from foster home to foster home in the toughest neighborhoods, she managed to get a job at a local health center; start a program to keep young people out of gangs; and she’s on track to graduate high school with honors and go on to college.

Jazmin, Andoni and Shantell aren’t any different from any of you. They faced challenges in their lives just like you do. But they refused to give up. They chose to take responsibility for their education and set goals for themselves. And I expect all of you to do the same. 

That’s why today, I’m calling on each of you to set your own goals for your education – and to do everything you can to meet them. Your goal can be something as simple as doing all your homework, paying attention in class, or spending time each day reading a book. Maybe you’ll decide to get involved in an extracurricular activity, or volunteer in your community. Maybe you’ll decide to stand up for kids who are being teased or bullied because of who they are or how they look, because you believe, like I do, that all kids deserve a safe environment to study and learn. Maybe you’ll decide to take better care of yourself so you can be more ready to learn. And along those lines, I hope you’ll all wash your hands a lot, and stay home from school when you don’t feel well, so we can keep people from getting the flu this fall and winter.

Whatever you resolve to do, I want you to commit to it. I want you to really work at it. 

I know that sometimes, you get the sense from TV that you can be rich and successful without any hard work — that your ticket to success is through rapping or basketball or being a reality TV star, when chances are, you’re not going to be any of those things. 

But the truth is, being successful is hard. You won’t love every subject you study. You won’t click with every teacher. Not every homework assignment will seem completely relevant to your life right this minute. And you won’t necessarily succeed at everything the first time you try.

That’s OK.  Some of the most successful people in the world are the ones who’ve had the most failures. JK Rowling’s first Harry Potter book was rejected twelve times before it was finally published. Michael Jordan was cut from his high school basketball team, and he lost hundreds of games and missed thousands of shots during his career. But he once said, “I have failed over and over and over again in my life. And that is why I succeed.” 

These people succeeded because they understand that you can’t let your failures define you – you have to let them teach you. You have to let them show you what to do differently next time. If you get in trouble, that doesn’t mean you’re a troublemaker, it means you need to try harder to behave. If you get a bad grade, that doesn’t mean you’re stupid, it just means you need to spend more time studying. 

No one’s born being good at things, you become good at things through hard work. You’re not a varsity athlete the first time you play a new sport. You don’t hit every note the first time you sing a song. You’ve got to practice. It’s the same with your schoolwork. You might have to do a math problem a few times before you get it right, or read something a few times before you understand it, or do a few drafts of a paper before it’s good enough to hand in. 

Don’t be afraid to ask questions. Don’t be afraid to ask for help when you need it. I do that every day. Asking for help isn’t a sign of weakness, it’s a sign of strength. It shows you have the courage to admit when you don’t know something, and to learn something new. So find an adult you trust – a parent, grandparent or teacher; a coach or counselor – and ask them to help you stay on track to meet your goals. 

And even when you’re struggling, even when you’re discouraged, and you feel like other people have given up on you – don’t ever give up on yourself. Because when you give up on yourself, you give up on your country.

The story of America isn’t about people who quit when things got tough. It’s about people who kept going, who tried harder, who loved their country too much to do anything less than their best. 

It’s the story of students who sat where you sit 250 years ago, and went on to wage a revolution and found this nation. Students who sat where you sit 75 years ago who overcame a Depression and won a world war; who fought for civil rights and put a man on the moon. Students who sat where you sit 20 years ago who founded Google, Twitter and Facebook and changed the way we communicate with each other.

So today, I want to ask you, what’s your contribution going to be? What problems are you going to solve? What discoveries will you make? What will a president who comes here in twenty or fifty or one hundred years say about what all of you did for this country?  

Your families, your teachers, and I are doing everything we can to make sure you have the education you need to answer these questions. I’m working hard to fix up your classrooms and get you the books, equipment and computers you need to learn. But you’ve got to do your part too. So I expect you to get serious this year. I expect you to put your best effort into everything you do. I expect great things from each of you. So don’t let us down – don’t let your family or your country or yourself down. Make us all proud. I know you can do it.

Thank you, God bless you, and God bless America.

Notice, the bolded words follow pretty much the same message delivered by a great president nearly 50 years ago, a message that has been held in high regard and seen as one of the greatest remarks made – oft-quoted by Democrats and Republicans alike.  Fifty years ago, the urging by President Kennedy was seen as something good and right – what can you do as a citizen of this great Nation to help her.

Now, 50 years later, the same message is being labeled as socialistic in nature – a march toward dictatorship – a flirting with communism – all because it is asking the youth of this Nation to think about their future and what they can do to help our country.

Because President Barack Obama has the audacity to ask the same question of millions of students in thousands of classrooms across one great Nation, he is drawing the wrath of many Republicans in all corners of this Nation. 

He is asking that students take ownership of their education – something that many have been preaching for decades.  He is asking that the responsibilities of citizenship of this Nation not wait until the ballot lever is pulled.  He is asking that our youth recognize how much it takes to build and improve our great Nation and take ownership of contributing to its success and good fortune.

Imagine that – the audacity of hope in our young people   – - the audacity to think that students should and will be encouraged to understand the importance of education  —  the audacity to ask that students think about their education and how they, too, can ask  “Not what my country can do for me, but what can I do for my country.” 

Imagine that.

President Barack Obama will deliver a message of encouragement to students across the Nation on September 8, 2009 (Photo Credit: Boston.com)

REPUBLICAN IDIOCY CONTINUES OVER OBAMA ADDRESS TO SCHOOL CHILDREN

President Obama is planning to address the nation’s school children next week.  Of course, Republicans are having a hissy fit and throwing out all kinds of statements accusing Obama of potential indoctrination of the millions who may be allowed to listen to his remarks.   Heaven forbid, our children may just be inspired to continue with their education and realize how important graduation can be.

How quickly the Repubs forget – or simply ignore the fact that Bush 41 (Daddy Bush) did the very same thing in 1991 during his presidency.  The full text of his speech can be found preserved in the George H.W. Bush Presidential Library for posterity – or should I say for embarrassment of the now-whining and crying Republicans.

The fact is that there is a hatred in this country for President Obama, and the right-wing nuts are fanning the flames of that hatred by screaming at everything the president does or doesn’t do.  Blogsters like Michelle Malkin post misleading articles and her duped readers spit out their hate-filled comments without even bothering to check out that this isn’t the first time in history a president has addressed the school children of this country with a message of the importance of education.

Let’s face it – the Repubs look like twits since one of their very own took to the airwaves to deliver a speech about the importance of education to millions of school children – wow what an awful thing to do!  Sure, the Democrats criticized Bush 41 for what they believed was a political ploy and a poor use of eduction money.  But their criticism in no way comes near the level of the plain downright hate-filled rhetoric being spewed by today’s clutch of whiners – likening Obama’s purpose to Nazi tactics and the implanting of a socialistic agenda in the minds of all the school children who will listen to the speech.

Let’s hope that the hundreds of school systems around this country don’t cave to the fear-mongering and name-calling that have become such intrinsic characteristics of  the Republicans.

President Obama will address the nation's school children on Tuesday, September 8th

DELUSIONAL DOBBS

Lou Dobbs has become delusional in his old age.  Despite the fact that the election is going on 9 months old, and Obama was clearly elected president, Dobbs continues his fanatical harping about Obama’s birth certificate.  CNN, placed in a delicate position, has put the kibosh – kinda – on Dobbs’ unending banter about Obama’s birth.

CNN checked out the story and found it wasn’t much of a story.  Dobbs was told to explain CNN’s findings and then end his constant twittering about the issue.  But Dobbs continued to talk about the story that has given rise to what has become known as the “Birther Movement”,  a fringe movement that is dedicated to the conspiracy that Obama really wasn’t born here in the good ‘ole US of A and, is, therefore, ineligible to be president of the United States.

Seems some sore losers just can’t get over the fact that Obama won the election.   But Dobbs may just have shot himself in the foot.  During the month of May, according to an analysis of Nielsen data, Dobbs’ 7 p.m. program on CNN averaged 657,000 total viewers and 181,000 in the key 25-to-54 demographic—numbers that were down a whopping 29 percent and 27 percent, respectively, as compared to May of 2008.

Perhaps his audience is just plain tired of Dobbs and his grandiose delusion that Obama really isn’t the president.

CNN talking head just can't get over Obama victory

“THE ARC OF THE MORAL UNIVERSE IS LONG, BUT IT BENDS TOWARD JUSTICE”

President Obama responded to the Iranian crisis by aptly quoting Martin Luther King:

“The arc of the moral universe is long, but it bends toward justice.”

The universe will always bend toward justice – it may be a long trek and it will inevitably cost millions of lives, it will result in brutal, vicious, and unspeakable crimes against humanity, and it will wreak destruction and havoc on nations and it will show no mercy in its struggle to survive, but it will, sooner or later, survive, and it will bend toward justice. I fervently pray for Iran that it is sooner.

I am cautiously and optimistically watching the events in Iran.  I remember the days of the American ally, the Shah of Iran, who was deposed in 1979 in the Islamic Revolution – a revolution which thrust Iran back into the hard line policies of the Ayatollahs and the denigration and subjugation of women.

My sons were not old enough to really be interested in this event.  But I well remember seeing the Shah of Iran – right or wrong – an American ally, propped up by American interests – being deposed and sent into exile.  In those days, Iran was our “friend”, our “ally.”

The Islamic Revolution of 1979 was quick, and it surprised the West and its allies.  Just as this current uprising has been quick and has surprised the world with its ferocity and its tenacity.  Mir Hossein Mousavi – leader of the movement – is ready for martyrdom, and he understands that his life may be offered up as testimony to his beliefs.  He knows, just as Benizir Bhutto knew, just as Burmese activist Aung San Suu Ky knows, that there are causes that are just and right and are worth the ultimate sacrifice.

Am I espousing ethnocentricity at this point?  Yes, I am.  I believe that people should be free, but it should be of their own choice and making – such as is occurring now in Iran.  I believe that according to the Declaration of Independence “that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness.”  That the word “men” now includes all genders and all races and all ethnicities.

Sooner or later, the people will rise against tyranny that is in place.   Sooner or later it truly is “power to the people.”  Sooner or later, the people arise and throw off the yoke of tyranny.

I remember the taking of 52 Americans for 444 days beginning on November 4, 1979, and ending seconds after Ronald Reagan assumed the presidency on January 20, 1981.  President Carter’s ill-fated attempt to rescue the hostages prevented him from a second term.  Who can doubt that if his rescue attempt had been successful, he would have won a second term?

Am I also espousing the rights and dignities of women?  Yes, I am.  The world should not support and encourage the second-class citizenship of women.  Women are not property – women are human beings and deserve to be treated with the same respect and dignity that are accorded to men.

So I anxiously await the outcome because I know at the very root of all justice is the ability of the people to rise up and claim what is rightfully theirs – equality, justice, and freedom.

WOMEN – 50% OF THE POPULATION AND ONLY 11% OF THE SUPREME COURT

Finally, after the Bush farce of selecting Harriet Miers in 2005 as his appointment to the U.S. Supreme Court to replace Sandra Day O’Conner, we now get the chance to have a woman once again claim a rightful seat to the high Court.  Bush and his advisers knew that selecting a less-than-qualified woman who would be bounced would allow Bush to argue that “see, I tried.”  And then he could go to his original plan of selecting a male to fill the seat emptied by Sandra Day O’Conner.

While women make up just a tad over 50% of the population, they have continuously been relegated to second-class status when it comes to seats on the Supreme Court. Currently, the Court has only one woman – Ruth Bader Ginsburg – for a whopping 11% of the Court’s composition.  Even when two women sat on the high court, the percentage remained at only 22% – far below the 50% of the population represented by women.

A number of  presidents have looked to good ‘ole males to fill Supreme Court seats despite the fact that many qualified candidates could have been found.  But now President Obama has selected a woman, Sonia Sotomayor, as his pick to replace retiring justice David Souter, ending the guessing game and the trash-talking about women’s weight and health as criteria to sit on the high bench.  Simply assanine.

What a dilema for Republicans.  On one hand, Sotomayor represents the “pull-yourself-up-by-the-bootstraps” philosophy about which Republicans are so want to preen and crow.  She was born in the Bronx and grew up in a public housing project.  Her mother worked six days a week to raise her and her brother.

Sotomayor later graduated summa cum laude from Princeton University and went on to attend Yale law school, where she was editor of the Yale Law Journal – probably under one of those oh-so-dreaded affirmative action quotas about which Republicans nash their teeth.

Republicans will be forced to find something wrong with her even though she was appointed to the federal bench by George H.W. Bush – a Republican.  This could be interesting.  Yes, indeed, Republicans may just be forced to confront their “speak-with-forked-tongue” philosophy.

CATHOLIC HIERARCHY OUT OF TOUCH – OBAMA REACHES OUT TO SOOTHE

President Obama was warmly welcomed at the University of Notre Dame – proving that many Catholic students, parents, friends, and relatives were able to keep a saner and calmer mind than the 35% of the Catholic hierarchy who decided to equate President Obama’s presence with Judas-like treachery.

Apparently, the 35% have forgotten that Pope Benedict had issued a position paper saying the death penalty “is not only a refusal of the right to life, but it also is an affront to human dignity”  and went right ahead and hosted George W. Bush – fondly known as the Texecutioner.  Ah, where were those protestors then?  Or could it be that many of the so righteously indignant cherry-pick which tenents of the Catholic faith to uphold?

Despite alumni attempts to coerce Father John Jenkins to retract the University’s invitation to President Obama, Father Jenkins remained steadfast in upholding the University’s tradition – beginning in 1960 with then-President Eisenhower delivering the first such address – of hosting the President of the United States as its commencement day speaker.

And, President Obama did not disappoint.  Even those who originally objected to Obama’s presence and receipt of an honorary degree were pleased with his speech.  The President refused to duck and weave and dodge the issue of abortion and, instead, confronted the uncomfortable topic head on, urging respect and civility with”open hearts, open minds, fair-minded words.”

Protesters in the crowd sporadically interrupted Obama’s commencement address before they were shouted down by the rest of the graduates.  Imagine that – the very idea that many of the soon-to-be graduates really wanted to hear what the President had to say.

Obama – with grace and courage – faced the task of stepping onto a stage knowing full well that a tempest was brewing outside the University stirred by the likes of outsiders Randall Terry and Alan Keyes – the perennial political candidate who was drafted to challenge Obama in the 2004 Illinois Senate race despite never having lived in Illinois.

But despite the efforts of Terry and Keyes to turn the graduation ceremony into a fiasco, the tempest remained in its teapot, the Catholic hierarchy remained out of touch, and Obama reached out to those with opposite views.

Photo Credit:  University of Notre Dame

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